A career path is a sequence of jobs an employee aims to hold throughout their time at an organization. While career paths traditionally go from entry-level roles to higher functions within an organization, not all career growth is vertical.

The traditional career path is referred to as a Career Ladder. It is a formal plan which shows the specific sequence of job positions a person should progress through in order to reach a more senior position with more responsibility and higher pay.

A Career Lattice, meanwhile, is a more flexible plan which supports employee development, up-skilling and recognition in multiple directions and areas. It is a career pathway that allows for vertical, horizontal, and diagonal movement. This means employees don’t have to stay in their departments to grow. 

Here are three steps you need to consider to implement career lattices in your organization –

#1 EXPOSE

For your employees to feel empowered to make lattice moves—which are always internal and sometimes lateral—they need to know what opportunities exist. Expose employees to other teams. The goal is to expose employees to what day-to-day looks like in other areas of the organization.

#2 ONBOARD

When employees shift internally, onboard them to ensure success. When an employee switches teams, there will be key skills and knowledge to improve. Work with the employee’s receiving manager to determine the ongoing learning and development resources should be made available.

#3 ENGAGE

Career lattices are intended to have a positive ROI for your talent strategy. So be proactive about gathering feedback on how the new role is working out. If there are issues, don’t be discouraged. Instead, take that post-mortem and use it to shape future career lattice moves for other employees.

Remember, the value of career lattices is growth – for both employees and the organization. Many organizations are helping employees design career lattices that satisfy them while benefiting organizational goals. The lattice model customizes career paths rather than standardizes them.